As a society, we’ve generally become a lot more accepting of people’s sexualities. After all, why should anyone care what someone else gets up to in their personal life?
That being said, for youngsters today, coming out to their parents can still be an incredibly nerve-wracking affair. It’s a different generation, a different mindset, there’s always a chance they might not accept their own child’s sexuality.
For one individual by the name of Enrique, his father not only wholeheartedly accepted him for being gay, but the two are actually able to joke about it together. Enrique caught a pretty wholesome yet hilarious moment in a video posted to TikTok. In the video, he asks his father, “Do you care that I’m gay?” and his dad has the perfect response.
For those that didn’t catch it, his dad says, “It’s your a** not mine,” before they both burst out laughing. That’s definitely not the response I was expecting, but honestly, that’s fair. Can we get a petition started to make this guy everyone’s dad for the rest of Pride month? I’ve said it already, but I’ll say it again, why can’t more people look at things this way? Why should it bother someone what another person’s sexual preference is?
Regardless, the hilarious clip has gone viral on the app, garnering well over five million views and almost a million likes. In the comments, people praised the father for his progressive mindset and shared their own personal experiences when they came out to their parents.
The only difference in our dads is that mine is Icelandic. Same thought process. “Doesn’t affect me so have a ball…..or two.” He said that. Ugh
We are definitely blessed. My parents are the best as well. I was scared cause my dad was born in Mexico. I thought it was going to be bad. it’s totally the best
Others echoed the sentiment that this should be the standard way of thinking for parents.
That is how all parents should answer!!
What do the statistics say?
This is just one great example, but according to a study published in 2016, more than 70% of lesbian, gay, or bisexual youth experience some sort of parental rejection — that’s still a shockingly high number of parents not accepting their children’s sexuality. The research also indicates that LGB youth (the study didn’t focus on transgender or other queer identities) in ethnic minority groups are more likely to experience parental rejection. It just goes to show that situations like Enrique’s are not the norm yet — we still have a very long way to go as a society.
In the caption underneath the video, Enrique admits that he was nervous about coming out to his parents at the age of 22, “especially cause we are Mexican.” But his family was incredibly supportive, saying, “They didn’t care and now we always make jokes about it.” Being able to joke like that with each other is certainly a sign of a strong bond between father and son.
